{User: Mako Grey}
{Current Balance: 167,450 Credits}
"WHAT IN THE WORLD?!!!"
Mako nearly fell over as he stared at the screen. He blinked several times, rubbed his temples, and even smacked his only good cheek just to make sure he wasn't seeing things. But no matter what he did, the number stayed the same.
He knew the money had to be from the bets he had placed on himself, but this… this was way more than he had expected. Sure, he knew the odds had been ridiculously stacked against him, but to rake in this much? It was unreal!
Mako ran a hand through his hair, pacing in the small ATM booth. "There's no way… How much did these idiots bet against me?" he muttered.
It was too much to process all at once. His brain felt fried as if it had short-circuited from the sheer shock of it all. Eventually, he just let out a long breath, shook his head, and retrieved his money card.
After a quiet walk home, exhaustion finally started creeping up on him. By the time he reached the front door of his family house, he could barely lift his arms. Every muscle in his body screamed in protest, and his eyelids felt like lead.
Mako dropped his things on the counter, dragged himself to the couch, and collapsed onto it. He was out cold before his head even fully hit the cushion.
********************
Mako finally woke up early in the morning. After checking his clock, he confirmed that it was already close to sunrise.
[5:09 AM]
Mako rubbed his eyes and cleaned his drool before he finally came back to his senses, but not after staring at the wall for about ten minutes straight.
After taking a shower and putting on a fresh pair of clothes, Mako came back to his living room to stare at his backpack where his money card was...
Mako couldn't afford any kind of technological device, but the one he did have was a money transfer device used to make transactions under 50 credits. This device also had a secondary function, which was to display the amount of money stored on the card.
Mako had already figured out where the money had come from. The bets he made on himself had made him around 165900 credits! It was totally mind-boggling as never in a million years did Mako think that he would be in possession of so much money.
With access to all this money, Mako's rate of advancement would skyrocket if he made the correct choices.
'Put 3 attribute points to intelligence.' Mako instructed the system.
[3 attribute Points have been added to Intelligence]
[Intelligence: 8] ⓘ
[Attribute Points Remaining: 0 Points]
A soothing and cool sensation washed over Mako as he allocated all his available attribute points to Intelligence. Alongside Perception, these were the two attributes he currently valued most as they weren't just useful in battle but would aid him in every aspect of his life, sharpening his mind, reflexes, and ability to analyze situations.
After painfully completing his daily tasks for the day because of his still injured body, Mako finally sat down on his couch to decide what the best way to spend his winnings was.
Mako had gained 2 more attribute points, which he also added to his intelligence, bringing up to 10 so that he could use all of his brainpower to figure out the best course of action moving forward.
*********
{Somewhere else in Emerald City}
In a dimly lit room that reeked of cigar smoke, a huge shadowy figure sat in a plush leather chair, his fingers tapping against the armrest in a slow, rhythmic pattern.
In front of him, two goons loomed over a beaten and bloodied boy tied to a chair. His head hung low, barely able to hold himself upright.
One of the goons pulled out a sleek tablet and tapped the screen.
A video began playing on the tablet, displaying a familiar scene, which was the broadcasted fight between Mako and Bill.
As the footage rolled, it didn't take long for the man sitting in the leather chair to notice something was off.
Bill launched attacks at Mako, but every time he threw an attack, his strikes would veer slightly to the left or right at the last second, making it almost effortless for Mako to dodge.
His movements lacked their usual precision and force, and by the second half of the fight, his punches were sluggish, sloppy, and suspiciously ineffective. It wasn't just a poor performance. It felt calculated.
"He threw the damn fight," the goon snarled, shaking his head. "He made it look real by striking him with the knife at the end, but he wanted to go down."
"And get this..." the other goon joined in, "Just before the match, there were a bunch of bets, all placed against him, from different accounts. Someone got filthy rich off of this."
The boss exhaled slowly, letting the weight of the accusation settle in the room. The tied-up boy, who was indeed Bill, coughed, spitting blood onto the floor before shaking his head weakly, tears running down his face. "No… no, that's not true… I fought fairly. He kept disappearing the moment I tried to hit him... and he was stronger than usual," he said. "You gotta believe me... this is all a misunderstanding!"
The boss leaned forward, his figure still hidden in the shadows, but his eyes gleamed in the dim light, completely void of sympathy. "A misunderstanding... You expect me to believe that?" His voice was calm, almost disappointed. "So you're telling me that you lost fair and square against a shrimp that doesn't have any abilities?"
Bill flinched but held his ground. "I swear—"
*CRACK!*
A loud crack echoed through the room as the boss's whip struck the floor. The goons smirked, stepping back as their leader stood up, towering over his victim. He cracked the whip again, this time letting it lash across Bill's shoulder, making him cry out in pain.
"You played me," the boss muttered, pacing slowly with his hands clasped behind his back. "I gave you that Level 3 Earth ability because I believed in your story and saw your potential. I envisioned you as a key member of my gang, but you exploited it for your own selfish purposes. All it took was a bribe for you to throw away your vows, disgrace the gang, and humiliate yourself in front of everyone. And the worst part?" He stopped, turning to glare at Bill. "You actually thought you'd get away with it."
He turned to his men, his voice calm yet final. "Boys, send him to the warehouse."
Bill's eyes went wide in pure terror. "No—no, PLEASE! ANYTHING BUT THAT! I'LL PAY YOU BACK, I SWEAR! GIVE ME A CHANCE! PLEASE, BOSS!"
The goons grabbed him by the arms, dragging him away as he kicked and screamed.
Unaffected by the pleading, the boss took a slow drag of his cigar and exhaled, watching as the goons dragged Bill and disappeared into the darkness. He let out a small chuckle before muttering under his breath, "You'll learn to never cross El Diablo again."
"NOOO! PLEASE! NOOO—"
*****************
Mako returned to Bird's Eye Street, but this time, he went to the small local library on the same street, which he also regularly visited.
This was the place where Mako would come to do his school work, projects, assignments, and his own research, but this time, Mako was using one of the public computers for an entirely different purpose.
Mako was visiting one of the official websites where regular citizens could buy ability books, skill books, and various other items up to level 3, which was the regulated level. Anything above level 3 was prohibited because it was considered too destructive for society.
Technically speaking a person could naturally evolve his ability to the max level of 10, even if he started with a level 1 ability book because it all depended on the person's talent. The only thing that the higher-level books did was that they gave a better starting point to the person, and they came with more and better pre-learned skills.
It was the same concept for skills as a level 1 skill could be perfected to their respective maximum level. However, a few things couldn't be learned at the basic level, and that required specific conditions to progress further.
Mako had just finished his browsing and clicked on the checkout button to finish his purchase.
Mako had chosen various items that would be extremely helpful to him through careful consideration.
Firstly, Mako purchased five high-tier healing pills, five high-tier rejuvenating pills, and five high-tier boost pills to keep on hand in case of an emergency.
As the name implies, healing pills can help people heal quickly. Rejuvenating pills help people regain their lost stamina and energy quickly, while boost pills temporarily increase the consumer's stats for a limited time. Boost pills could be considered like those old-school performance-enhancing drugs humans used to use, but they are not harmful and don't affect people with strong power levels, so they are not that high in demand or expensive.
Everything was ranked in a tiered system, much like how abilities were categorized by levels. Each tier represents a significant increase in power and rarity, progressing in the following order:
- Low
- Medium
- High
- Advanced
- Epic
- King
- Legendary
- Mystic
- Demon
- God-like
Just as level 3 abilities and skills were the most commercially available, the highest tier a person could purchase consisted of high-tier items.
Along with the pills, Mako also purchased his first power weapon. Power weapons were totally unique and not similar to the old weaponry humans had access to.
The exact process of how they were forged was still unknown to the public, but many people had different opinions about what it might involve.
Mako purchased a high-tier 9-inch blade that he wanted for self-defense.
Not wanting to waste money, Mako spent hours scrolling through numerous websites and providers to find the best ability book he could afford. Finally, he found it.
It was from the website of the famous official city-wide provider, TIM Laboratories. His website offered a level 3 Fire ability book at a discounted price for first-time buyers.
After hitting checkout, the screen in front of Mako displayed the total bill.
{1x Level 3 Fire Ability Book}
{1x High-tier Blue Horn Mammoth's Combat Knife}
{5x High Tier Healing Pills}
{5x High Tier Rejuvenating Pills}
{5x High Tier Boost Pills}
{Total Amount: 134,500 Credits}
{Delivery ETA: 1 Hour}
{Do you wish to proceed?}
{Yes / No}
Mako clicked on yes, and the transaction was successful, but a notification appeared on the computer screen before Mako could finish up his business. It was from the same website as it said,
{Congratulations! Since you spent more than a hundred thousand credits on your first purchase, TIM Laboratories has awarded you a free skill book, which is included in your order.}
"Well, that was unexpected, but I am not going to complain," Mako said as he accepted the generous offer.
Mako was on his way back home, and his package would already have been delivered by the time he arrived.
**************************
Author's Note: Hey guys! Universal Power System is one of my favorite projects, and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I have enjoyed writing it. This is my very first work, so expect some amateur writing and a few slips. However, I always try to learn and correct myself so I can create a more coherent narrative. I hope you guys enjoy it. Don't forget to check out my other works!
Come say hi to me on Discord: https://discord.gg/TvjkrdnbE2